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Technology & Combat Characteristics

Because the Jupiter Empire had limited resources to work with, they designed their mobile weapons so that each area would have a specific use: the 'head' was reserved for sensors, the body held the pilot and generator, the arms were manipulators, and the legs were for movement. The EMS-06 Batara was built around this and the intention of getting as much use out of the mobile suit as possible; as such, it has a relatively simple construction that could be easily altered to create new variations or individual customization, but because of this, it had no built-in weapons. To compensate, the military of the Jupiter Empire developed a wide variety of hand-held weapons - its standard armament is a beam saber and a beam rifle, with beam gatling guns and missile launchers also being seen but apparently limited to stationary use - and two sub-flight vehicles, the EMA-01 Acusirio and the EMA-02 Thostede, that were outfitted with large anti-ship particle beam weapons.

What sets the Batara apart from virtually all prior MS designs is its legs; it was designed to retract its legs into its thighs during use in zero-G, allowing for high-mobility flight. Unfortunately, this cruise mode also consumes more fuel, which, coupled with the short-range nature of its design, puts an absolute limit on the distance it can travel. (Their range appears to be so low that chasing after the Crossbone Vanguard is inherently impossible - they'll run out of fuel before they can even get close to the Mother Vanguard, much less attack it.) Also, due to living primarily in space, the denizens of the Jupiter area apparently consider the feet of a MS to be landing gear, and so the Batara is likely not that useful in a one-G environment

One note of interest is that the Batara uses the mono-eye design for its primary camera, as well as an extended "mouth" with external power cords attached, features that give the Batara a similar head design to the famous Zaku line of mobile suits. However, this is difficult to tell because of the Batara's "goggle" equipment, a large sensor apparatus that flips down to cover the primary camera in battle and extends beyond the "mouth". The "goggles" are sensor equipment which improves the Batara's visual data acquisition. At least one of the "lenses" has a telescope feature which enhances the main camera's zoom feature.

Armaments

Beam Shield

Beam Rifle

Beam Saber

4-tube Missile Launcher

2-barrel Beam Cannon

Beam Gatling Gun

History

The EMS-06 Batara is the first mobile suit developed by the Jupiter Empire, developed at some point in time between the years U.C. 0123 and U.C. 0133. The Jovians would station these mobile suits at their various military facilities, and any facilities they feared would be targeted by the Crossbone Vanguard space pirates.

Initially, the Batara was used solely by the Jupiter Empire against the mobile suits of the Crossbone Vanguard. However, a number of these suits would end up falling into the hands of the Crossbone Vanguard. Because these mobile suits are easy to maintain, the Crossbone Vanguard would use the Batara as a replacement for the old XM-08 Zondo Gei as their main combat mobile suit until SNRI supplied them with the XM-10 Flint.

When the flagship of the Jupiter Enpire, Jupitris 9, traveled to Earth, it brought along a large contingent of Batara mobile suits, likely under the guise of a self-defense force. Ten days after the joint Earth Federation/Jupiter Empire attack against the Crossbone Vanguard pirates, the Jupiter Empire used their Batara mobile suits, and any other mobile suit/mobile armor forces they brought, to attack Earth Federation military bases. After the surprise attack, the Batara mobile suits were recalled to the Jupitris 9 to protect it from the Earth Federation's counter-attack.

After the failed invasion in U.C. 0133, the EMS-06 Batara remained in the military service of the Jupiter Empire. However, many of these machines, both those already in service and new machines yet to be built, would be modified into the EMS-06-P Arana Batara until it was supplemented and replaced by the EMS-12 Arana.